The official UK prices for in-app purchases (i.e. microtransactions) have been revealed for Pokémon GO, and as usual they can ramp up to some pretty extreme amounts. The thing you’ll need most in the game is pokéballs, with which to catch pokémon in, and they cost 100 pokécoins for 20, which is 79p or less – depending on how many coins you buy at once.

Pokéballs can be found for free by exploring the (real) world but you’re also encouraged to buy incense, to increase the number of pokémon that appear for 30 minutes, and that will set you back 80 pokécoins (about 60p).

The cost of the one-use items depends on how many you buy at once, with a single egg costing 80 pokécoins but 25 of them costing 1,250 (about £10). There are also permanent upgrades as well though, such as an egg incubator for 150 (about £1.20) and a bag upgrade for 200 (about £1.60).

If you buy in bulk you save, but that can add up to an awful lot for a supposedly free game, with the maximum being 14,500 pokécoins for £79.99.

Update:

It might not be out here officially yet, but eager fans have already found a way to play Pokémon GO in the UK. All you have to do is visit the link here from an Android device, tap the download button, and let it install the extra files.

There isn’t an iOS equivalent yet, and it’s more than possible that when the game is officially released it’ll wipe your progress and force you to start again from scratch. But treat it as a free demo and you should be fine.

Original story:

Catching Pikachu and co. is now a reality, or at least an augmented reality, as the free iOS and Android app goes live in Australia and Japan.

The new Pokémon sequel Sun and Moon is out this November on 3DS, but it might not necessarily be the biggest new Pokémon release of the year. Not if free-to-play AR game Pokémon GO takes off.

The idea behind the game is that you catch virtual pokémon by using your phone camera to look around and find them in the real world. Water pokémon can be found near rivers and lakes, grass types in parks and fields, and fire types, err… in volcanoes? (We’re not sure how they’re going to fudge that one).

Your phone will vibrate if a critter is nearby and then you get to capture them in something like the normal manner. But there’s also a wrist strap device you (or more likely your kid) can wear that lights up and makes noises when you’re near a prime pokémon-catching location.

The free app has never had an exact release date but overnight it popped up on the Japanese, Australian, and New Zealand app stores.

There’s still no specific date for the UK, but we’re probably talking a matter of days now, rather than weeks or months.

Pokémon GO has been developed by Niantic Labs, who you might know from AR hit Ingress, and Nintendo are very much hoping it’ll be their next big thing.